Two Wrongs Don't Make a Right
by Destined Meltdowns
Summary: Danny Fenton's ghostly secret is safe…until one fateful encounter with his parents. They always told them they'd accept him no matter what. They lied. No PP; challenge for NinjaMonkeyGirl2012
1. Rejection

**Here's the challenge for the monkey girl. Sorry it took so long to get posted! -,-'**

**Disclaimer: Me no own Danny Phantom**

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><p>I walked down the city streets like I had so many times before. Darkness had fallen over Amity, and the street was silent. I sighed, letting the dense fog swirl from where I breathed. <em>Kind of nice to not hear screaming citizens or some ghost ranting about how they're going to take over the world.<em>

…Of course my ghost sense went off right after I thought that. "Great," I muttered. I ran behind a building, closed my eyes, and suddenly felt an icy power explode inside my abdomen. "Going ghost." Blinding white rings formed around my waist and washed over my body, baby blue eyes turning a neon green, black hair a soft white. Danny Phantom was ready for battle.

Legs forming into a wispy, semi-transparent tail, I took off to the skies. 'The Ghost Zone's greatest hunter' was waiting for me.

"Don't you ever take a break?" I yelled, firing an ectoblast. I didn't even bother trying to hear out his pathetic rant this time; it wasn't like Skulker just felt like dropping in and saying hi. The sooner I could get this fight over with, the sooner I could get home. I was already out past curfew (Sam insisted that I go home but I wanted to see how the movie we were watching ended), so it wasn't like I was further breaking rules.

"I won't rest until I hang your pelt on the wall, whelp," he retorted, weapons emerging from his suit. I charged up an ice beam in my hands, but Skulker smiled. I guessed that he'd gotten sick of me freezing him and flying away.

A ton of flames blasted towards me. I quickly formed a ghost shield, and when I let it down, Skulker emerged from the smoke and whammed me backwards – an exceedingly powerful force – with his metal fist. _How did he improve so quickly? _Skulker had always been at the top of my Most Dangerous Ghosts list, but I didn't ever let him know; that would probably increase his ego and determination tenfold.

I began gasping for air, the wind knocked out of me, which was not good to do considering the fact that ghosts don't need to know how to breathe. I shot a few weak green blasts between wheezes, but even Skulker's bulky, metal body was able to quickly dodge the desperate attempts at putting up a fight. Between my blasts, Skulker was rapidly firing capsules which sent powerful electric shocks through my body each time I was hit. There was no point in putting up another shield; they would pass through it anyway.

I was quickly distracted by the nearby Fenton Works building. I could see red flashing through the shades which was my parents' code for ghost alert. _Just when I thought things couldn't get any worse._

Skulker, too, seemed to be briefly occupied with the sudden commotion but quickly turned back to me and grabbed the collar of my hazmat suit while I wasn't looking. My choppy breaths finally slowed, but my stomach still cripplingly sore. "Sweet dreams, ghost boy!" he hissed with a devilish grin. I struggled to escape from his vice grip but he quickly raised his arms and sent me hurtling towards the ground. It rushed towards me with immense speed, and my body in too much pain to even grasp the concept that I needed to turn intangible, I smacked into the ground.

There was a painful cracking sound as I made contact, some of the concrete caving in and pieces of the rubble rock getting stuck in my hair and clothes. A sharp object cut deeply into my neck and a bit of blood was tricking onto the once-sidewalk. I never felt so pathetic before. I was beaten so easily even though I'd fought Skulker countless times before.

I heard a door slam open as a familiar female voice shouted, "Eat ectoplasm, ghost scum!" I curled up my body, waiting to be blasted, but it appeared that Maddie Fenton had only spotted Skulker as of now. Jack emerged from the door as well, holding his own bazooka-like ecto-gun, and the metallic ghost and my parents began firing at each other into the night.

Being outnumbered, Skulker was gradually worn down, and instantly noting how his attacks were decreasing in power, my mother fired a net that was glowing with ectoplasm at Skulker. It wrapped around him and shocked him before his entire body disappeared, net and all. _He was probably sent back to the Ghost Zone._

I was thanking every deity I'd ever heard of that they hadn't seen me. I knew that if they spotted precious Phantom lying so weak they wouldn't dare miss the chance to capture him.

The world around me began to fade in and out, buildings spinning around, and I focused as hard as possible to attempt to stay conscious. _Must not pass out. Must not revert to human form… C'mon Jack! C'mon Maddie! Go inside!_

It was exceedingly foolish to hope for that, though. Who wouldn't miss a caved-in sidewalk with dust clouds from the rubble swirling all around it? Curious as to what was there, Jack and Maddie headed over. I remained paralyzed with fear, though, and I was simply too weak to do anything.

"Phantom?" my mother breathed. An unsettling grin spread across her face. "What a pleasure to see you! We're going to have to invite you over!"

I stared at their blurry figures, neon eyes wide. "No need to be scared, Phantom," Jack continued. "As long as you cooperate."

In that moment, with whatever energy I had left, I flew up into the air as fast as I could, trying to get away. I couldn't see where I was going, though, and I wasn't flying very straight, so they fired a few blasts at me.

I instantly dropped out of the sky as my mother clucked her tongue at me. "Silly boy. You think that you can escape so quickly? It's your turn to get the short end of the stick."

They swept some kind of ectoplasm-coated bag over me.

Everything went black.

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><p><em>Am I conscious? I guess so, I mean, I can't be dreaming. I can't see anything, but where am I?<em>

Judging from my surroundings, I was definitely stuck in the bag, so not a lot of time had probably passed. I knew where I likely was: my basement. Not good.

I felt a pair of strong hands hoist the bag into the air and dump my body down onto an operating table. Before I had seconds to react, I was strapped down with more ectoplasm-coated belts. My arms, torso, and legs weren't able to move, and I wouldn't be able to phase through them either.

"You're awake, Phantom. Good," my mother spat, not caring that I was in a lot of pain. Sometimes I'd wished they just knew who I was; maybe life would be easier. However, another half of me knew that it was a gamble. How would they react to knowing I was a half-ghost?

"Jack, are the DNA scans done?"

"No good…again," he grumbled, his eyes scanning over the charts on the computer.

Maddie remained silent for a couple of minutes as she looked over the tests appearing on various computer screens. I listened to the clock tick the seconds by, and then she finally said, "Maybe you can help us." Her tone was sly and unsettling. "Do you know why your DNA tests are coming out all scrambled and jumbled? I can't decipher what it's trying to say…like the results make no sense."

My stomach lurched into my throat. _Deny, deny, deny. _"Um, maybe it's because my DNA is composed of mainly ectoplasm so it's not much of DNA," I offered.

"Wrong answer," Maddie said, her eyes glaring into mine and her voice steely. "We've tried this same test on countless other ghosts and nothing malfunctioned. Are you willing to tell us what you think is wrong?"

"That's all I know!" I blurted.

"Lies." My mom pressed a button and I felt burning hot electricity rip through me. My entire body jolted from the sudden shock, and each second, the only thing I could think of was the blistering heat.

Although I'm a ghost hunter and have experienced countless types of pain, only the Fenton Portal has really made me break. This was another exception to my endurance. I cried out in pain and began murmuring, "Please just let me go. I didn't do anything to hurt you. Let me go." It was weird how they could be nurturing to Fenton, yet merciless towards Phantom.

"Are you sure that's all you know?" my mother asked again. All her familiar friendliness and warmth was devoid from her eyes. I didn't even bother trying to reply. I just kept screaming and screaming through the pain.

Her finger jammed on the button and the electricity increased to levels which I deemed impossible. It got so bad my eyes started to well up and tears were streaming down my cheeks. I couldn't take that much pain. It was indescribable. Impossible.

And then things got any worse. Those all-too-familiar rings formed around my waist and traveled upward. The second Danny Fenton replaced the ghost boy, my parents cut the power. There was another silence, this one infinite more times unnerving than the last.

I breathed heavily; the only noise one could hear. I could feel my singed skin almost…sizzling from heat. Death seemed rather appealing right now. At least I would stop hurting.

…Now looking back on it, my ghost half was probably the only thing that kept me alive in that situation.

"Danny?" my mother whispered. I weakly nodded. A look of confusion crossed her face that quickly melted into anger.

"You're a ghost?" my father yelled, infuriated.

"Dad! It's not what it looks like. I've always been trying to save the town." Although I tried to sound persuading, I was so energy-drained, it came out hoarse.

"You've kept this from us this whole time? You've terrorized Amity? Our own son?"

"You never tried to save the town!" Jack continued. "Remember the time when you overshadowed the mayor? Remember how you stole everyone's presents at Christmas? You were the ghost punk wreaking havoc on everyone's lives this entire time? I can't believe you kept this from us all this time. You don't deserve to live here."

"That wasn't me," I said, my eyes brimming with tears once more. I thought I was caught in some horrible nightmare. It wasn't possible. My parents told me they would always accept me no matter what. How could they? "I was overshadowed. People were impersonating me and framing me."

"Of _course_ it wasn't you. _You're _the town hero, so you're _only _a good person. No ghost is good, half ghost or full." The bitter sarcasm made me feel like I was being stabbed in the heart.

"But-"

"I don't want to hear it," Maddie seethed.

"You know what?" Jack continued. "Just…get out."

…

"…What?"

"I said GET OUT! You're an ectoplasmic waste of space! Get out of our house, get out of Amity Park, and get out of OUR LIFE! You're not our son." Jack's face was hard and furious. He wasn't the fudge-loving father I'd once known.

I began to cry again, but I then bit my lip so hard it hurt. No. I wouldn't give them the satisfaction of my pain. "I _hate_ you!" The straps were no match for my fury, so with every ounce of energy I could muster, I broke through the straps and began running out of the house as fast as I could. Jazz had heard the commotion, I assume, and was standing by the door. I didn't even look at her as I sobbed and fled.

My parents were dirty rotten liars. And they said that they were ashamed of me? I was ashamed of them.

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><p><strong>Please tell me what you thought! PLEASE! I crave your feedback! I want to know if I got the emotion across well because I'm still working on genres such as romance, hurt, etc.<strong>

**All reviewers recieve a virtual pie, your choice of flavor! :D**


	2. Running

Day 1

Red sneakers pounded against the asphalt as I fled the sanctuary I'd once known. Now the only thing Fenton Works meant to me was betrayal, broken memories, and hatred. I transformed into Phantom once again, the whole process being painful to do. My parents hated me for who I was.

_It's all _their _fault! _If they didn't build the stupid ghost portal in the first place, I would have never got shocked. It's their fault that they hate me!

Just the thought of that – of their hypocrisy made my blood boil with fury. I fired several powerful ectorays into the night sky, followed by a few beams of ice to get all that anger outside of me. It would never fully leave, but the burden I held became too much.

I flew as fast as I could away from Amity. I didn't care that they would be living without a ghost hero. Clearly some people didn't want the 'ghost punk' to be hanging around anyway. Where I was headed…? I didn't quite know.

…Away.

Yes, I was headed away.

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><p><span>Day 2<span>

"Hey, kid. Do I know you from somewhere?" A man at a gas station convenience store stared at me with inquisitive eyes. He could tell I was familiar, but he couldn't quite connect Fenton to Phantom.

"No, sir. I'm afraid not." I placed several coins on the counter along with the pastry and juice I was buying, solemn eyes staring at the ground.

The man shrugged and rang up my purchase. "Where are your parents?"

"Outside filling up their car," I lied. I took the food and headed outside without another word. Standing behind the store, I transformed into Phantom and flew off again. I would save the food for later when I was really hungry.

…I'd eaten so little for only two days and I was already beginning to become desperate for food.

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><p><span>Day 5<span>

I was pale. Paler than ever. I was truly a pathetic sight: a raven-haired boy with dead eyes slumped against an alley wall. It reeked of garbage and body odor, but the smell eventually faded after I'd gotten used to it. My clothes were completely torn up and dirty.

What a hero!

A newspaper fluttered from one of the dumpsters nearby and got caught under my right leg. I leaned over and picked it up, not having anything better to do. 'AMITY PARK RAVAGED BY GHOST ATTACKS' the headlines screamed.

_"I don't know where Phantom's gone," an anonymous woman told the reporters. "But we really need him back. It's been worse than ever, even though there are other ghost hunters to step up to the plate."_

_When asked who these ghost hunters were, she responded, "Some woman dressed in red and of course the Fentons. They seem upset – well even more than upset when they fight ghosts now. But these people can't take on all these ghosts alone. We _need _someone with supernatural powers to save us."_

"Ha," I muttered under my breath. "I'm _never _coming back."

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><p><span>Day 7<span>

I couldn't believe desperation had brought me so far. I was ashamed of myself, quite frankly, as I really thought I could survive longer on my own. I was so hungry, though, and I reeked of foul stenches I'd rather not re-describe. It was dangerous to be living outside, though. One thug thought I was sleeping and began to steal my jacket. When I opened my eyes, he pulled out a knife and threatened me. My suddenly violent green eyes scared him away.

But if I had been asleep while he took my jacket, what else would he have taken? People could murder me in my sleep and no one would care.

Yes, I knew I had to do this, despite how much it pained me. Icy north wind flew towards me, whipping in my face and tousling my white hair. Thankfully my ice core prevented me from experiencing any cold.

I knew exactly where I was going, and I didn't know if my final destination would be for better or for worse. All I knew was that who I was going to see would probably be the only person on earth who understood me.

After what seemed like millions of light years, a large mansion came into view. I swooped down, transformed into Fenton, feet stumbling as I skidded to a halt on the front steps. I drew in a shaky breath, clenched my fists, and finally curled my fingers around the large knocker, pounding it against the door three times.

A couple seconds later, the door slowly opened, revealing Vlad Masters, my arch nemesis.

"Well, well, Daniel," Vlad said, a sly grin playing on his lips. "Come to surrender to me?" His tone was rather sarcastic.

"You could say that," I mumbled. Feet shuffled against the nicely-paved porch as I could feel his gaze penetrating me. He was gawking in disbelief. "I've come to join you."

He looked pleased for a second, but that look quickly washed off his face, replaced with sheer skepticism. "How do I know that this isn't one of your little tricks to beat me?" he snapped.

I held out my hands as a sign of surrender. "Look at me. First of all, I look like someone dragged me through a dumpster, threw me off a cliff a couple times, and then ran me over with a steamroller. I'm not in the shape to fight you. I'm also alone; your ghost sense hasn't gone off, and I'm desperate. My parents kicked me out of my house."

Vlad seemed a little sorry for now, but my statement didn't completely mollify his suspicions. "Why?" he asked. It seemed he was trying to be gentle. Perhaps he really did feel for me?

Of course he would! He must have felt similar when my mother – no, I couldn't call her my mother – when _Maddie _completely forgot about him while he was in the hospital and got engaged to da- Jack.

"They found out," I said. Three simple words. Three simple words with so much meaning to them. He instantly knew what I was trying to say.

"You _told_ them?"

"'Hey, Mom and Dad! Guess what? I'm your number one enemy Danny Phantom cause I'm actually a half-ghost! I shocked myself in your portal two years ago when Sam dared me to go in!'" My expression was very un-amused as I said this; I assumed Vlad would be smarter and realize what really happened. Or have a vague understanding at the least.

"They tortured me at first. I was already weak from a fight with Skulker and they found me lying in the street. And then I transformed. I was too weak to maintain my ghost form any longer, and I couldn't fight the transformation. They saw what I _was _and told me to get out. That they were ashamed to call me their son." My throat began to tighten as tears threatened to overflow. _Not now! You are _not _crying in front of your arch nemesis!_

"It had to be only Jack that hurt you, though. Maddie would never do that." Even as he said it, though, I could tell he was doubtful. He knew how obsessed my parents were with Phantom.

"No, Vlad, sorry, but your hitting-on-my-mom days are over. If she knew you were a half-ghost, you'd be blown into little pieces of ectoplasm in three seconds flat."

The billionaire bit his lip for a second, trying to decide what to do. I think he knew how convincing my story was; I looked like crap and acted like crap. "Okay, Daniel. You can stay here with me."

* * *

><p>I had removed myself from the world. Days dragged by, but I didn't really care about time at all anymore. I spent my days locked in one of Vlad's guest bedrooms, staring at the wall. The faint cracks in it were very interesting.<p>

No ghosts came to visit me which was a relief. The last thing I want to do was go ghost. To turn into _him_.

If that was to be my life for the rest of my damned existence, I was no longer living anymore.


	3. Reminder

The days passed, and I thought time would heal. It didn't. Every night, I would have nightmares about my parents, each one getting worse. I had one where my dad slapped me, one where my mom attempted to drown me. Every day, I was tortured by the thoughts of being kicked out. I missed my parents – the ones who cared about me. The rejection was too much to bear.

Jazz wasn't an option to comfort me, being far away at Yale. _They _wouldn't tell her anything, and the last thing I wanted to do was deliver crushing news while she had so much work to do. And if somehow _they _found out I had come into contact with Jazz, they would probably punish her and shut me out for good.

It wasn't worth it.

Whenever I shifted into Phantom, I would claw at my flesh and burn it with ectoplasm. Hair was an utter disaster from all those times it had been forcefully ripped at. The suit was tattered, the 'DP' symbol torn off. All of this resulted from vain attempts to destroy Phantom.

Eventually, I couldn't take the thoughts anymore. Whispers of my parents telling me they loved me and then whispers telling me they hated me echoed through my ears. They taunted me. They made me feel like I was going insane. I wouldn't be surprised if I was. I was trying to remember when life was good, but bad memories would block the good ones out.

Getting shoved into a locker by Dash and failing my classes seemed like child's play to me, and these events seemed like they occurred in another lifetime. Could it only have been a month ago where I was going to school with my friends, laughing at the Nasty Burger, and adored as a ghost?

I knew what had to happen; Phantom had to go. I couldn't take him anymore; he was living inside of me like some sort of parasite feeding off my misery. I knew that technically, we were one and the same, but it didn't feel like that at all.

I could think of one person who could help me at a time like this: Clockwork. He knew virtually everything. Surely he could think of a way to remove my ghost half.

Vlad had given up on trying to befriend me or make me feel better. I guess he assumed I would open up when I was ready, so he left me alone each day. We would only see each other when he delivered meals to me, so of course he didn't notice when I slipped into his secret lab and opened up the ghost portal.

I walked to Clockwork's as Fenton, head drooped down low and hoodie pulled up. Most ghosts didn't see my face, and some who didn't know of my human form's appearance didn't even recognize me.

But of course, I wasn't lucky enough to avoid _all _my enemies, now was I?

My shoulder smacked into the side of another person, causing my hood to fly down, revealing my raven hair and blue eyes. "Hey, watch it, kid!" a voice snapped. It was definitely a female, and all-too-familiar.

Kitty stood before me with a shocked expression. "Phantom?" she gasped. "You've got a lot of nerve to be coming here like that!" She jabbed at my chest with one of her fingers, referring to my human form.

"Back off, Kitty," I hissed, shoving her to the side and continuing down the floating rock formation. "I'm not in the mood to deal with you."

"…I'm sorry, what was that?" Kitty taunted devilishly. She sent a tiny pink ectoblast towards me which hit me in the small of my neck. She was ready to push my buttons until I snapped.

Big mistake.

"I said BACK OFF!" I instantly transformed into Phantom, unleashing a powerful ghostly wail that knocked her to the ground and instantly made her pass out. My eyes were glowing an intense bright green with sheer rage.

I stood there for a few seconds, shaking and panting as I was forcefully reverted to Fenton, and then I turned around, heading back towards Clockwork without a second glance. "She deserved it."

Clockwork's fortress soon loomed above me, and I simply melted through the doors and inside where the Master of Time resided. His eyes were locked on me as I entered; he had obviously been expecting me. …Ever since I began causing trouble for him, I had a feeling he was keeping a close watch over me.

"Mr. Fenton," he began smoothly. "What – was – that?"

"I was defending myself," I growled in reply. No, no, no! This was not what I wanted to talk about! I needed to know how to remove my ghost half.

"She was teasing you!" Clockwork sighed, exasperated. Who did he think he was? My fath-

…Never mind.

"You could have easily walked away, and she would've left me alone."

"Really?" I replied, voice rising in volume. "Because it seems that no one these days leaves me alone!" I wasn't just talking about him, despite the several 'clips' of me flashing across screens in front of him.

"Calm yourself, Danny," he commanded, pounding his time staff on the ground. The force of his voice shook the entire room, and I bit my lip, silencing myself. "But the past is the past. There is no changing it – well, at least not on my watch." He slightly tilted his head to the side, shifting into his 'baby form.' "But I sense you come here on different terms."

I was pretty sure he had a vague idea of what had happened. I'd always thought of Clockwork as some all-knowing god of the Ghost Zone. And if he was monitoring me like I suspected…

"I need to know how to remove my ghost half."

The ghost narrowed his eyes, leaning forward and propping his chin up on the top of his staff. "Why in the Ghost Zone's name would you want to remove your ghost half? It's a part of you."

I knew he meant that more character-wise than literally being a part of me, but I ignored his comment and continued to say, "I can't take it anymore. This burden inside of me. It's why my parents want to blast me with guns and dissect me. It's why I'm a despicable, undesirable creature in their eyes."

"Your parents are blind," Clockwork sternly replied. "They're too close-minded to see that just because some ghosts cause trouble doesn't mean all ghosts cause trouble. In fact, there's more of us that just want to be left alone and really don't want anything to do with the human world."

"That's beside the point. I don't want to remember them. At all. I'm done with being the hero. I just want my old life back where I was a _normal teenage boy!"_

"Isn't what makes you abnormal what makes you so amazing?" he inquired. "You're brave and powerful…"

"Don't start that crap with me, Clockwork," I hissed in reply. "You just saw that my powers are 'hazards to others.' Wouldn't it be better for everyone?"

"Don't take out your anger with your parents with me!" Clockwork snapped. "I don't really feel like dealing with an angry teenager whose butt I saved _multiple times!"_

I was about to protest, but he was right. I was taking out my anger on him when he hadn't done anything, and I owed him so much after all the times he helped me, despite not even wanting to at points. "Just…please. Tell me. You have to know a way."

I headed over to his time medallions, gently running my fingers down the faded cloth they hung from. "If you're the master of time, then you have to know of other halfas that existed before me. They just might have been created in different ways – near death experiences, perhaps. But there also must have been others who removed their ghost halves. There has to be some way!"

"I'm afraid not, Danny Fenton," Clockwork steely replied. But I could tell he was keeping something from me.

"Liar," I icily shot back.

"Okay, Mr. Fenton. Would you like to know the truth, then? The truth is that I know that there is a great, great chance that if you lose your powers, you'll want them back for one reason or another. But if you want them back, that's too bad for you! Your DNA, Mr. Fenton, is extremely unstable. After first gaining your powers, losing them thanks to Miss Manson, regaining them again, once more thanks to Miss Manson, and then potentially losing them once more, your structure will have deteriorated to critical levels. Regaining your powers would be at the extreme risk of death, and the world truly can't afford to lose you."

"I don't want to help anymore, though!" I screamed. "Why don't you understand that?"

"I do understand. But I know that you'll want your powers back. There's always a hero inside of you. Sometimes you just have to find it."

"Well wouldn't you be able to just turn back time and fix that moment, then? That couldn't hurt."

"Yes, it could," he cut in. "In addition to your constant not being able to make up your mind, I, as you know, have changed the time-space continuum several times for you as well. Thanks to that, the very fabric of time-space itself is very thin, and one more change I make for you could cause it to do things unfathomable to even me. _I don't want to take that risk_."

I didn't want to listen to any of his hippie-talk any longer, so I stormed off, yelling, "Fine, if you won't tell me, I'll find a way!"

"I hope you know what you're getting yourself into, Danny!" he replied. "Because if you do something stupid, as I'm sure you're determined to do, make sure you don't come crying back to me!"

I now sped through the Ghost Zone at top-speeds as Phantom for probably the last time. _I swear, sometimes I want to strangle that man! _I clenched my fists as this thought crossed my mind and squeezed my eyes shut, trying to calm myself.

…But wait. Hands… I wore gloves on my hands…

…

_The gloves…_

…

I knew how to remove my ghost half.

* * *

><p><strong>I want to apologize for the horrible OOCness in this fic. Obviously, I'm not the best angst writer, but you all seem to like angst, I guess, so bear with me...? And yeah, this was my first time featuring Clockwork in one of my stories. I probably butchered the poor guy. ;-; Sorry, Clockwork.<strong>

**Nevertheless, I hope you enjoyed.**


	4. Remember

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

I sat on a cold, metal operating table, Vlad peering at me with genuinely concerned eyes. He was reluctant to go through with my plans since the moment I told him, not wanting to hurt me. He seemed to have actually taken a liking to me, and though he used to be more than willing to inflict as much pain as possible, he completely opposed to do so as well.

…But he still wanted me to be happy.

Yes, I knew this had to be done. Finally, I would be free at last! No more teetering on the line between life and death. I would finally be Danny Fenton again. A teenage boy, and nothing more. Life would be simple; without having to fight ghosts, I could focus on school, which was obviously very important. And if anything happened, well, I had training with weapons, and Vlad was a halfa as well.

A blurry memory then surfaced in my spinning mind. I remembered how my future self, Dan, had asked Vlad to remove his emotions by separating his ghost half from his human half. He had turned into a violent murder – nothing like his former self. I then saw myself flying high above the Nasty Burger. My family and friends' lives were on the line, and I shouted to them, "I'll never become him! I promise!"

I promised to them that day, and I wasn't one to break promises.

No, my parents also promised that they would never hurt me. Why should I have stayed loyal to them when they couldn't keep my trust? Besides, there was no guarantee that I would turn into Dan, anyway. Ha, the chance was slim! This situation was different from the one that spawned him.

"Yes," I finally replied, biting my lip and swaying my dangling legs back and forth under the table. "Yes, I need to do this."

I _wouldn't _become Dan. No, I wouldn't allow it! I could control myself. And Phantom knew just as well as I did how much we detested Dan. As much as we were growing apart, we still agreed on that matter.

It was a risky idea, but I knew that this would be for the better. All my emotions and memories I held with Phantom would disappear like foggy breath on a cold winter's day.

"Daniel, this is going to be very painful, and it will be nearly impossible to put your two halves back together." It was his last attempt to change my mind, and though his face was begging, I knew that he knew I wouldn't cave.

"Very well."

A needle filled with anesthetic pierced my arm, but I barely noticed. The pain was almost comforting.

All I could think as I began to fall into a deep, pleasant sleep was: _Freedom… Freedom…_

* * *

><p><em>Neutral P.O.V<em>

The room was dead silent as Vlad Masters stared at the unconscious Danny Fenton. He was hesitant and having second thoughts. No one was forcing him to operate on Danny, and maybe it was better to just leave him be. Leave him, but risk Danny getting angry with him.

He was conflicted inside; it wasn't hard to tell. His conscience was screaming that splitting Danny in half was wrong. Destiny had chosen him long ago to be the ghost hero, and it was wrong to tamper with Destiny's choices.

However, Vlad was a selfish man. Though distant at first, Danny had slowly grown warmer towards Vlad and respected him as somewhat of a parental figure. By not operating, he knew that all that progress the two had made bonding-wise would be lost, and Danny would be angered once more. He didn't want to lose their relationship.

Vlad had made his decision.

Drawing in a shaky breath, he slipped his hands into the two massive metal gloves he'd built. Though barely audible, one could hear him murmur, if listening close enough, "Can I do this?"

Another breath. Another piercing silence.

Then he began.

The gloves stretched out on their own, glowing an ectoplasmic green. He quickly lunged ahead, hands disappearing into Danny's body as if he wanted to finish the act as fast as possible. His arms were jerked around, muscles tightening as the gloves presumably flexed, grasping onto the ectoplasmic signature encoded inside.

After a few moments of struggling, his arms flew backward, Phantom flying with them. The ghost boy's limbs were stretched out as he reached back towards Fenton. Perhaps he believed he could pull himself back into his human half?

He seemed lost and confused for a few seconds, glancing around at his surroundings. He was clearly familiar with the lab, but he had never been there alone – that is, without his human half to support him.

"Why does Danny hate me?" he asked. He looked defeated, sad, and weak.

An instant look of pity crossed Vlad's face. Poor Phantom; he felt unwanted by, well, himself, and he knew that Vlad had assisted in tearing him apart from Danny. He wasn't meant to become two separate entities.

"Come sit with me, boy," Vlad sighed, patting down on a stool next to him. "Let's talk."

Phantom floated over, eyes locked on the massive contraptions that encased Vlad's hands. "I don't understand. …You ripped us apart. But…I'm Danny. And Danny is me. But he hates me…"

"He doesn't hate you," Vlad said gently. He was fumbling for words to say, and he knew this response was pathetic at best.

"Look what he did to me," Phantom said. He was referring to his damaged body. "He tried to destroy me."

"Listen," the billionaire continued, "Danny's going through a very difficult time right now, but please understand it's not your fault that any of this happened."

"Yes it is," he bitterly replied. "It's all my fault."

Vlad bit his lip and sighed, grabbing Phantom's hands and saying, "Look at me. It's not your fa-" He froze in place as a fiendish grin crossed Phantom's face. The ghost wasted no time in sending a powerful ectoplasmic shock through his body, and in the brief second that the older halfa was immobilized, he tore the gloves off and fired them up on his _own_ hands.

"A trick!" Vlad hissed. He looked like he wanted to slap himself in the face; he was the master of trickery, and shouldn't have fallen for something like this!

He had felt so bad for Phantom, though.

"Now _you'll _know how it feels to be torn in two as well!"

A blood-curdling scream ripped through the air as Plasmius and Vlad were divided for the first time. Everything was going horribly wrong.

Phantom seemed satisfied, though, with just that. He had gotten revenge on Vlad – an eye for an eye – oh, but now Plasmius seemed to have plans of his own. The vampire-like ghost, who had been slumped against the wall for a while, held out his hand, and Phantom was enveloped in a pink aura.

"Huh?" he gasped, green eyes widening with fear as he was pulled closer and closer to Plasmius.

"Finally…Daniel," he gasped between choppy breaths. "You…and I…together…will become the most powerful ghost in the universe!"

Vlad couldn't believe that all that evil had been residing inside him even though he had felt so happy. So changed.

Phantom made one final attempt to escape from Plasmius's strange psychic-like hold, but it was too late. His last wisp of hair was absorbed inside of Plasmius's body, and he suddenly began to glow a bright white light. Vlad turned around in attempt to shield his eyes, and he saw Danny stirring on the operating table.

"No, Daniel!" he yelled. "Not now!"

There was an explosion of power from the other side of the room, sending Vlad backwards into the operating table's legs. Danny's eyes jolted open, and he instantly rolled over on his side. He was just in time to see his worst nightmare be born.

There stood young Dan Phantom, cape fluttering, blood red eyes glittering with delight. "I have to say," he began, "Thank you both for making this possible. Your idiotic mistakes have brought life to me, and I'll soon reign over this miserable world!"

He flicked his forked tongue in and out between his fangs. "However, I'm afraid this is the end of the line for you two." He fired up two lethal ectoblasts, one hand aimed for Vlad's heart, the other Danny's. "Enjoy your afterlife, my pathetic human friends!"

Two blasts riveted the room, one followed by Vlad's last cry in utter misery. Danny silently met his fate.

Silence.

An eerie cackle shot through the remains of the destroyed lab as Dan disappeared through the roof and into the world which knew nothing of the horrors to come.

The sound never seemed to end.

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><p><strong>I feel I need to clarify that Fenton and Phantom (when sharing the same body) were <em>not <em>two different people. They were both Danny. Fenton just considered Phantom as a different being after the events involving his parents.**

**And regarding this chapter in general...I don't know... There's just something about it that's 'meh' to me. If you found something that you think I could improve on, don't hesitate to leave a review and tell me, as I feel that something's wrong that I'm not just catching. But yeah, letting me know what you liked and what I could fix up really help, and all your feedback is greatly appreciated.**


	5. Red Rum

**This chapter is somewhat of a filler; it tells Sam's thoughts on the situation and such. Hopefully you'll be able to realize what I hinted in previous chapters. Also hope that I'm not too redundant during Sam's section. She's really torn. **

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><p>The shadow of young Dan towered over the crumpled bodies of Jack and Maddie Fenton. He turned around with a whir of his black and white cape, leaving the crime scene. Police sirens began to blare in the background, but Dan didn't run. Why would Dan run? Dan wasn't a coward unlike his pathetic human half.<p>

It was a shame for the boy, too. Dan could've killed him so quickly back at Vlad's lab that he wouldn't even feel it. But no. Danny decided to fight him and hang on. Dan knew that it was going to be a problem that Danny was still alive. He was one of the only ghosts capable of defeating him, and the ghost portals were certainly accessible. The selfless little idiot would obviously do anything for the safety of others, even if he had been completely wronged. Why, Dan bet that Danny had already shocked himself through Vlad's portal.

Now he had to find a way to just lure the boy in. …Of course! His friends. Especially that Sam girl. Just take everyone who he's ever loved and round them up. Those pathetic little humans

Dan now floated in the air, flashing his fangs and hissing with his forked tongue at the police officers now clustering around the area which he was hovering above. He knew they would find the message…and surely they did.

Written on the Fenton's kitchen wall in bright red blood was: **Red Rum; Scumbags like them only get killed in the end. You're next…**

The police officers shone their flashlight on the words as fear settled inside of them. Who was this mysterious new ghost that resembled their missing town hero Danny Phantom? More importantly, where on earth was the ghost boy? Why had he forsaken them when he was so greatly needed?

"You're probably wondering who I am," Dan said, grinning at all the officers around him. A Guys in White van sped towards Dan as several agents leaped out, all aiming their ecto-guns at the ghost.

"Freeze!" they shouted.

"Silence you pathetic morons!" Dan shouted, blasting the car with a vivid neon ectoray. The officers backed up. "Nice and easy, now. Easy."

As soon as Dan determined the officers far enough away, he cleared his throat and turned back to the shaken authorities. "As I was saying, my name is Dan Phantom. And I can assure you that I am ten times more powerful than your pathetic ex-hero Danny Phantom. In fact-" He flashed his fangs, "I'm his future self."

A feeling of uneasiness washed over the crowd of men and women_. This_ is what their beloved town hero would become in due time? This _monster_?

One brave officer was shoved forward from the crowd of silent officials. With a slightly trembling arm, he held out his ecto-gun and semi-threateningly aimed it at Dan. "I'm sorry, we can't let you get away with this. Step down now or you will be forced to step down."

Dan gritted his teeth. "Humans are so difficult," he scoffed. There was a moment of utter silence.

"Well?" the officer said, raising his eyebrows. He seemed reluctant to fire, but duty called.

Dan yawned for a bit before staring at the officer. His lips were pulled into a thin line. "I'm sorry, no, wait, I'm not, but I don't step down from fights."

Without another word, the man fired the ecto-gun. Dan shook his head, smirked, and flew upwards, the blast shaking the building which it impacted. Dan then grinned, his eyes blazing crimson. "I'll just get rid of you nuisances all at once," he said. He took a deep breath in, the street now so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.

Then he unleashed it. A ghastly howling sound pulsed from Dan's mouth in the form of green energy rings. The legions of officers were blown back, vehicles and all. Loud crashes sounded as the whole world seemed to tremble.

"You shouldn't have underestimated me," he chided before shooting into the air and looking around. All he had to do was locate Samantha. And then he would take care of Daniel for once and for all.

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><p>Sam could tell Danny had been losing it, but she didn't want to believe reality. Her friend had once been so brave and strong and kind. She had truly loved him with all her heart. But now he was changed.<p>

His abandonment issues had twisted his heard and transformed him into a different Danny. She no longer saw the hero inside of him. All she saw was a boy whose only purpose in life was to defeat the monster he had created.

There was only a shell left of the old hero she once knew. The personality had drifted away each day. It all started when they first ran away together; he became very distant all of a sudden. Sometimes Sam would ask him a question and there would be several seconds before there was any response. Sometimes the response wouldn't be relevant at all.

He'd become…obsessed. After the whole zoning-out phase had settled, all Danny could talk about was Dan.

And as much as she hated what Danny was becoming, how could she hate him? In fact, she seemed to crave him more and more each day. Danny was willingly opening up and spilling out everything to her – they were there for each other – this was the way she always wanted this to be.

Every moment their hands touched, every second their lips met, every night they lay on the ground, staring at the sky, she could feel a powerful, electric feeling surging through her veins. The feeling made her unstoppable. …And she knew that Danny needed her more than ever.

Now she felt completely torn in half. One side of her was screaming for her to stop Danny and tell him there were other ways to fixing the problem besides unleashing Dan. His idea was insane. There was no certainty that it was even going to play out as he had hoped. Dan could easily want revenge on the halfa who sealed him away so long ago – why should he have any reason to spare Danny? But the other side was warm and happy; she and he were finally together…if they found a way out of this debacle, maybe they would have a future together…

Yes, a future with children. Hopefully two beautiful ones. She wanted a boy and a girl so badly. And she wanted no one to be the father but Danny. So though she knew that this plan was somehow destined to fail, how could she give up.

_Maybe Danny will get better,_ Sam thought to herself. _We beat Dan once, we can beat him again._

Choppy breaths startled Sam as she looked back at the tent. She quietly crawled inside and saw Danny, curled up and crying in his sleep. Tears streamed down his cheeks and glistened in the moonlight. Sam felt her heart tugged upon as she leaned down; poor kid. She didn't like her parents, but what Jack and Maddie did to him was unforgiveable.

She gently leaned down next to Danny and wrapped her slender arms around him, quickly pecking him on the cheek and having the faint taste of salty tears on her lips. "It's okay, Danny," she whispered. Slowly, his tears slowed and his tense figure relaxed. "I'm here. I love you."

Sam lay on her back, arms still wrapped around Danny as she stared at the moonlight sky, hoping that tomorrow would be more promising than the awful moment she called now.

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><p><strong>The action-packed moments are approaching in the next chappie! Don't worry!<strong>

**Please review!**


	6. Release

**Dear Angrier Than Hell,**

**I appreciate that you enjoy reading my story. However, I _do have a life_, believe it or not, and I _actually have stuff to do_ like study for finals and complete projects. Please be respectful of that fact and be kind when a story takes a while to update.**

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><p>The faintest rays of morning broke through the mesh 'windows' of the tent. I sighed as my eyes slowly opened, rubbing the crust out of them. I looked over at Sam – she was fast asleep.<p>

As I rose in my sleeping bag, the somewhat cool air bristling at the hairs on my arms and making them stand on end, I realized something stiff on my cheeks. My mouth tasted like blood, and my tongue was raw. Probably bit it in the middle of the night.

Not wanting to wake Sam, I arose and walked down to the edge of the river nearby our campsite. Leaning down, I gazed at my dirt-caked face. There were clean areas on it, though they were from the paths the tears had stained away. Scowling, I dipped my hands into the river and splashed my face, cleaning it completely. Taking a bath would probably do me some good, too, so I stripped off my tattered T-shirt, ripped jeans, sneakers, and finally boxers before wading into the water's edge.

I held my breath and ducked down as the cool water wrapped around me. _Just gotta get clean_, I thought, opening my eyes. The world around me glistened in the early morning light. I slowly waded forward, now laying on my back and staring at the ripping surface, the dirt merely floating away off of my bare skin. Everything was so peaceful; I could escape from the awful world I was trapped in.

Then I saw it. Two blood red eyes glaring at me through the water. Even though everything appeared distorted, I could see them crystal clear. It was Dan! He was here to get me – here to finish me off and enjoy it. He had found me, I didn't know how, but I knew he was here.

I let out a strangled scream, bubbles erupting from my mouth and rising to the water's surface, I pushed out and sputtered for air, then transformed and fired ectobeams everywhere. I needed to protect myself from this…this monster.

"Show yourself!" I screamed. "I know you're there!"

There was no response. My heart pounded in my chest, the noise like a base drum loud enough to make my ears shatter. He was watching me. He had to be.

Shooting into the air, I yelled, "I said show yourself!" A loud, banshee-like scream ripped through the air, and then I realized this sound was coming from me. Green rings rippled from my mouth as I unleashed my ghostly wail towards the pond. There was no way Dan was getting away; I needed to kill him before he killed me, and the ghostly wail was nearly inescapable.

"Fight back your coward!" I screamed, no energy left in me. My exhausted body tumbled out of the sky and fell back into the ravaged pond, water splashing in all directions upon impact. I breathed heavily. Surely Dan hadn't escaped. No…it was all a hallucination.

With that, my tense muscles relaxed and I breathed a soft sigh of relief. My breaths were becoming more even, and I began to completely relax. Hallucination…

I got out of the water and put my clothes back on, ignoring the fact that they were now dripping wet with me, as I hadn't bothered to dry off. I couldn't shake the feeling that something was following after me, and I constantly looked over my shoulder. Seeing Dan's eyes was merely a figment of my imagination, but it felt extremely real…

I trudged back to the tent, sighing. Sam and I needed to get moving so I could begin my plan. This world was more and more in danger each second Dan existed. "Sam," I called "Start packing up."

No response. "Sleeping in?" I said light-heartedly. I entered the tent. "Sam, c'mon. We really have to get going. We need to make it to the Ghost Zone as soon as possible."

I groaned. "Sam, wake up!" I pulled the bunched-up covers up and stumbled backwards. Sam wasn't there. "No, no, no," I mumbled, completely aghast. "This can't be happening." _Maybe she just got up to get something or take a walk. Yeah, that has to be it._

In a whir of panic, I transformed into a ghost and shot into the air. "Sam, Sam!" I screamed frantically. "Sam, this isn't funny! Come out! Where are you?"

I sped all over the campgrounds looking for a sign of her. Anything that would give me a clue as to where she went. She couldn't have been taken, could she? "SAM!"

Suddenly, white flashed in front of my eyes, and my vision was suddenly clouded. I was suddenly kneeling on all fours in front of Dan. "What- What the heck do you want, Dan?" I hissed.

"Oh, nothing much. It's a simple trade, really." His forked tongue flicked menacingly between his pointed teeth.

"You- You were behind this!" I yelled in an accusing tone. I jumped up to lunge for Dan, but he snapped his fingers, and I felt a sudden force weighing down on me. I was forced back onto my knees no matter how hard I struggled against his current. "What have you done to her?"

"Nothing really," Dan said with a yawn, obviously teasing me. "Nothing _yet_."

"So what do you want?" I snapped.

"It's simple, Danny. I want you. Show up at my fortress two miles east of Skulker's island alone within three days. I don't want any funny business, because if you do, I will be more than willing to eliminate you and your pathetic little girlfriend just like I killed your parents."

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><p>Clockwork watched Danny, Observers intently looking over his shoulder.<p>

"This Danny Phantom is a menace to us all. We must eliminate him for once and for all," one stated.

"Yes," another one interjected. "He's just going to use Danny for his own purposes so he can terrorize the world and truly reign. Danny is currently the only thing that stands in his way; the Ghost Zone civilians are too scared of him to intervene. Danny also possesses great authority in the human realm; him turning to the dark side would prove utter defeat and surrender from the humans."

Clockwork shook his head.

"We can defeat Dan by ourselves, Clockwork!" the Observant protested. "You've been too reckless!"

"No," Clockwork replied. "We cannot. Only Danny can truly defeat Dan. He will wipe you all out in one ghostly wail and you'll never see the light of day again. That I can assure you." Clockwork's eyes locked with each of the Observant's. "Trust me, if it gets too out of hand, I can do something. But we'll cross that bridge when we get there."

The group stood in silence for a bit, most of the Observants shuffling out of the room. The youngest and newest member, however, stayed for a bit. He was silent for a while until looking up and saying, "Why do you protect that ghost boy so much, Clockwork."

Clockwork did not respond for a while, lost in deep thought, before finally saying, "I don't know."


End file.
